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New Zealand (Māori: Aotearoa [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui) and the South Island (Te Waipounamu)—and over 700 smaller islands.
Welcome to New Zealand. Get official travel information, maps, itineraries, best time to travel & things to do to help you plan your next holiday to New Zealand.
5 days ago · New Zealand, island country in the South Pacific Ocean, the southwesternmost part of Polynesia. New Zealand is a remote land—one of the last sizable territories suitable for habitation to be populated and settled—and lies more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southeast of Australia , its nearest neighbour.
- Experience vibrant Māori culture. There are countless ways to engage with New Zealand’s Indigenous Māori culture while exploring the country. You can expect to hear greetings in te reo Māori (the Māori language) frequently, but for a deeper dive, the Auckland Museum and Waikato Museum both have displays of centuries-old Māori taonga (treasures).
- Be immersed in Auckland’s diversity. Framed by two harbors and built on the sprawling remnants of more than 50 long-inactive volcanoes, Auckland is New Zealand's most diverse and cosmopolitan city.
- Hike one of New Zealand’s Great Walks. Hiking (known as “tramping”) is one of New Zealand’s most popular pastimes, with well-established wilderness tracks, shelters (called “huts”) and campsites throughout the country.
- Negotiate a two-wheeled adventure in Central Otago. New Zealand's first – and arguably best – multi-day cycling experience is the Otago Central Rail Trail.
- New Zealand’s weather may be relatively mild – but it also has the potential to be wild. An archipelago in the Pacific, New Zealand is a long, skinny country moored in tempestuous oceans heavily influenced by Antarctica.
- It’s okay to dress down. Casualness rules in New Zealand, even in urban areas. Depending on what region you’re in, even a wedding might see some Kiwis in jeans, their cleanest bush shirt (a tough woolen shirt) and gumboots (rubber boots) or jandals (flip flops).
- What do you mean, there’s no bus? Unbelievably, New Zealand’s public transport was arguably far better in the mid-20th century. But with many tram and railways ripped up for the sake of roads, the country has become very car-dependent.
- Biculturalism is at the heart of Aotearoa’s culture. Unlike many colonized nations, in 1840 the British Crown signed a founding treaty, the Treaty of Waitangi with Indigenous Māori, who have lived in New Zealand since at least the 1300s.
Oct 9, 2023 · 1. Queenstown. Best for adventure activities. New Zealand’s adventure capital is a favorite with visitors and for good reason. On the shores of Lake Wakatipu and surrounded by snow-capped mountains, Queenstown ’s location makes it one of the country’s most sought-after places to work and play.
Apr 24, 2024 · Background. Polynesian settlers may have arrived in New Zealand in the late 1200s, with widespread settlement in the mid-1300s. They called the land Aotearoa, which legend holds is the name of the canoe that Kupe, the first Polynesian in New Zealand, used to sail to the country; the name Aotearoa is now in widespread use as the local Maori name for the country.
